Google removes 270 million gambling adverts in 2025
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22 Apr 2026 •
Reading time: 3 minutes
In 2025, Google reached a milestone in its advertising control policy by removing more than 270 million adverts related to gambling and betting.
A large-scale filtering system
The gambling sector is one of the most closely monitored. Regulatory authorities, particularly in Europe, are stepping up pressure to limit consumers’ exposure to illegal online offers.
Major tech companies are no longer merely technical intermediaries, but genuine gatekeepers to the advertising market. According to its latest report on ad safety, Google blocked or removed more than 270.7 million gambling-related ads in 2025, whilst restricting a further 123.9 million ads from the same sector.
The issue is not limited to sponsored ads. Google also reported 9.7 million violations linked to publisher pages in the gambling and betting sector.
Artificial intelligence at the heart of the system
To tackle this vast amount of content, Google relies on advanced systems, notably those based on Gemini technology.
Keerat Sharma, Vice President and General Manager of Privacy and Ad Security at Google, explains:
“Our teams have long been using cutting-edge AI technologies to identify and block scammers, and Gemini takes this a step further. Our models analyse hundreds of billions of signals – including account age, behavioural indicators and campaign patterns – to neutralise threats before they reach users. Unlike older keyword-based systems, our latest models have a better understanding of intent, which helps us identify malicious content and block it proactively, even when it is designed to evade detection.”
Google has already tightened its policies several times during 2025. In Europe, advertising accounts that accumulate violations or lose their certification repeatedly could face permanent exclusion.
Effectiveness called into question
Google claims that its systems intercept more than 99% of non-compliant ads before they are displayed. A performance that, on paper, seems remarkable.
However, Google search results in Belgium remain flooded with content promoting illegal casinos. According to an analysis by Gambling Club, the majority of sites appearing at the top of the results are not legitimate, but rather hacked pages redirecting users to unauthorised gambling platforms. In some cases, only two or three out of around twenty sites are reliable, with the others being manipulated to display misleading rankings of banned casinos. Even more worrying is that these fraudulent pages often manage to rank above official or recognised sources, completely blurring internet users’ ability to distinguish between what is legal and what is illegal.
The volume of ads removed is not sufficient to gauge the system’s actual effectiveness. What matters is the ability to prevent illegal operators from reaching consumers.
Google and other major tech companies remain under scrutiny. Public authorities are stepping up their requests for explanations regarding the presence of content linked to illegal gambling. The issue also extends to app stores, social media and even influencer marketing.